Walking like an Egyptian - Cairo Part 1

After a few days in the modern architecture of Dubai, it was time to head home. When we booked our  flights we intentionally gave ourselves a 20 hour layover in Cairo. This meant two very early morning flights and a definite lack of sleep but I think we would both say it was ABSOLUTELY worth it. I could probably write four blog posts on just the 17 hours or so that we spent in this historic hotbed (literally)... but we will see how well I can condense.

We arrived and purchased our visa on arrival. We booked a room at a hotel very near the pyramids for $60 and I exchanged emails with the owner before the trip letting him know what we wanted to do and coordinating the timing. A driver was waiting for us at the airport and told us it would be about an hour to the Pyramid View Inn.

Along the way, we marveled at how developed the city is, but also the history contained within it. It's an interesting juxtaposition both when compared to Dubai but also just contrasting some new areas of the city with the old mosques or buildings lining the Nile that have clearly been there for centuries. Many buildings are unfinished with rebar exposed on the top floor. We were told this is because the government does not collect property taxes until a building is finished so people intentionally don't finish them. There are families living in them but they purposely didn't build the final/top floor to avoid paying taxes. In addition to our Tour de Cairo by car, we discussed what we wanted to see and do while we were there. Our driver mentioned that there was one thing that he highly recommended that we hadn't included. He didn't elaborate and eventually pulled up outside this small shop and turned off the engine. Ok, I guess we're getting out here.

It was the Egyptian Papyrus Museum. We walked in and there was a very knowledgable gentleman who spoke very quickly and gave us the rundown on how papyrus paper is made. Here's the Cliffs Notes: papyrus is a plant with a long stem that grows along the Nile. They cut a stalk off of the stem and peel off the outer layer exposing the inside of the stem. They them cut this inside into strips and use a rolling pin to flatten them out into long skinny strips. Once soaked in water, the sugars in the plant are ready to adhere the pieces to each other. They are aligned parallel vertically and then another layer is done horizontally, so essentially the front has vertical stripes and the back horizontal. I was surprised to learn that it is not woven like a basket. It is then put into a press to squeeze out the excess water and stick everything together with the plant's natural sugars. He explained that there are many knockoffs around Cairo made from banana stems. He warned us that they are very cheap but do not last because while banana is a decent alternative texture-wise, there is too much sugar in the banana so over time the paper eats away at itself.

We ended up buying two pieces of artwork from the museum, the perfect souvenirs from our express visit to Egypt:

After the museum, we were taken to the Inn where we dropped off our stuff, changed clothes and had a quick bite to eat before heading out to the pyramids. The entrance fee for the pyramids compound is a whopping $11, but you get hounded by people trying to sell you water, horse-drawn carriage rides, camel rides, etc etc. We walked in and past the Sphinx, then turned right and went around the Pyramid of Khufu (aka The Great Pyramid of Giza), then continued past the backside of the Pyramid of Khafre and ended in front of the smallest, the Pyramid of Menkaure. It's about 12km between all three pyramids so not exactly a short walk when it's 110+ degrees outside. By this point, I was overheated and, according to Dan, sporting quite the attractive sunburnt nose. So we headed back to the hotel for a quick rest.

Here are some photos from our exploration up close and personal with the pyramids:

 Sphinx and Khafre/Up close with Sphinx's busted face (Thanks Napoleon)

Pyramid of Khafre/Dan with Pyramid of Khufu

 For sake of showing how big the rocks are

 Us in front of the Great Pyramid of Giza (aka Khufu), and up close with the base of the same pyramid

I'll stop here and save the remainder for the next post! :)

The Metropolis of Dubai

When Dan mentioned he had a training in Dubai, I was instantly excited to tag along. All the photos and opinions set the expectation that Dubai is Vegas-like. In a sense, it is... with the impressive architecture and desert heat. However, it's not a strip of hotels with casinos and large quantities of alcohol. Dubai is massively spread out and incredibly well-planned. Every road has 4-6 lanes in each direction, showing that when the city was expanded in the 90s with oil money, there was a lot of forethought into the growth prospects. No one was wanting to need to widen a road or be chastised for not properly anticipate the influx of people. Alcohol is only served in hotels so, if a restaurant is outside a hotel, in a mall for example, it cannot serve alcohol. The city is religious but also recognizes that a large percentage of its population is expats so it's more loose in its interpretation of the religious expectations.

I have to admit I was completely blown away with the architecture and how much area the city encompasses. I arrived around 4pm on Thursday and did some work while Dan was finishing his training courses for the day. We were trying to come up with ideas for the night and Dan suggested going to the mall. I love a good mall and Dubai certainly has its share. I feel certain I saw at least 6 while we were there but the destination was the Dubai Mall, currently the largest mall in the world (in square footage). We roamed around and enjoyed the impressive array of stores and had a bite to eat. We chuckled at all the western restaurants and stores we encountered along the way, the most amusing being: Ponderosa steakhouse, Applebee's, Chuck E Cheese, Red Lobster and multiple Chili's locations (none of which can serve their signature margaritas because, alas, they are not in a hotel).

On our way out, we went to watch the fountain show which is modeled after the Bellagio in Vegas. It is choreographed to music and is located directly in front of Burj Khalifa, the current tallest building in the world. We marveled at the sheer size and unique architecture of the structure. Truly impressive.

On Friday, Dan had classes until 2pm so I worked most of the day from the room and had lunch on my own in the hotel. We then went on an expedition to the gold souk to see what that was about. Many shops were closed since Friday is the religious day in that region (Friday and Saturday are weekend days). A month ago, we made a dinner reservation at one of the iconic hotels on the Gulf, which is modeled after a sailboat. We got dressed up and headed over to the beach to take a photo or two with the hotel, Burj Al Arab, in the background. 

We entered the hotel for our dinner at Al Mahara, a seafood restaurant, known for their aquarium. The restaurant was absolutely beautiful. Dan and I found it amusing that there was a cluster of fish that was huddled around a table where a couple was eating. We had some amusing conversation discussing what the fish must be thinking as the patrons consume their friends in front of them. We had some nice wine, salmon two ways and king crab/foie gras ravioli as our starters, then the sea bass and scallops for mains. 

After our fancy schmancy dinner, we decided on a more casual place for the rest of our night. We found an Irish pub that had a great live band and served Budweiser on tap. Sold! When you live abroad, you find yourself overly excited about the rarely found American brews. We met another couple who lives in Dubai and chatted with them over beers and tunes until the wee hours of the morning.

Saturday, we slept in and went to another area for lunch. This is when we learned how large Dubai really is. It took easily 30-40 minutes to get there from our hotel. We had a nice lunch with a pretty view of the Marina and then headed back to the hotel for a rest. We were supposed to have dinner in the Marina area that night but given the lengthy drive, we decided to stick closer to home and ate at the hotel instead. We had some Italian food and tried to get a few hours of sleep before going to the airport for our 5am flight.

All in all, Dubai was a great time and we are so grateful we got to spend some time there. It is truly impressive to see all of the manmade creations.

Oxford University Wedding, Boat Race, and Hoopla

Two weeks ago, we arrived in Oxford. It was our first time in the quaint little town and it truly looks like a story book that has come to life. We walked around a bit and went shopping for some last minute pieces to complete the tuxedo that Dan required for Saturday evening. We got a phone call from Hannah saying that she needed to take us up on our offer to help with set up. We met her in Christ Church college, which is the college that Robin went to. It's similar to the American university set up where there is a college of Business, college of Engineering, etc. Their colleges just have names because... well, the place was established in the 12th century, so they do what they want. The grounds are absolutely beautiful and we were in awe of the idea that people actually go to college there.

We helped a bit and then went to meet some people for dinner. Hannah met up with us after the rehearsal and we went back to the college to help her put together bouquets and boutonnieres... a task which none of us had ever attempted before. At about 1am, we had finished up and headed back to the hotel. The next day the wedding was at 2pm at the Christ Church Cathedral.

After the ceremony, we all went outside and were handed Pimm's cups in mason jars while the wedding party did photos. Afterwards, we lined up outside the gate of the college for them to walk out. On the way out of the college they passed under 8 crossed oars held by his former teammates, then walked through a barrage of dried flowers before being greeted by two horse guardsmen in full get up with swords (Robin was also in the British Royal Army after college). They got into a horse-drawn carriage and were taken to the river, where two of Robin's rowing friends would row them down the river to the reception.

Off we went to the reception which was complete with food, drink, dancing and some hilarious toasts, especially from Robin's brother, who was the best man. We had a great time but had to head back to get some rest as we had part two of the party the following day.

We awoke and headed back to London for the 161st boat race between Oxford and Cambridge. Tens of thousands of people lined the banks of the Thames to cheer for their team. There were three races, the most important being the last one. We were watching from the start of the race, so we cheered until the boats went around the bend and then ran into a pub to watch the remainder on TV. The entire course is roughly 5km, and the race takes somewhere between 16-20 minutes to finish. Luckily, Oxford (the dark blues) smoked Cambridge and won easily.

When the boat race finished, we headed back to our hotel to get cleaned up as we were going to the Oxford University Boat Club dinner that evening. It was a black tie event, but it was enjoyable to see all the past rowers in their blazers together for this annual reunion. They introduced the rowers in the boats that competed that day, which was a sizable cheer as all three Oxford boats won their races. We had a formal three course dinner and wine and enjoyed chatting with the people at our table.

All in all, we had a fantastic time in England and are so pleased we could be part of Hannah and Robin's wedding day (and other festivities)!

VIP Fancypants Dinner

They say life is all about who you know... well, we know the Food and Beverage Director. We were in the lobby a few weeks ago waiting on the ever temperamental elevator when a guy extended his hand and said he had seen us around quite a bit. Turns out, he is Roy, the Food and Beverage Director at the hotel. We chatted for a bit and parted ways.

We saw him again (and again, and again) and he said that he really wanted to plan some sort of dinner for us his "special guests". Now I'm pretty sure he meant "special" in a good way. Not the way that your mom says "you're special" when you've just done something really stupid. Anyway, he insisted on making this occasion a surprise for me and sort of a birthday dinner. In an effort to keep this a surprise, he and Dan had several phone chats and text messages to sort this whole thing out.

Last Sunday was the big day. Roy told us to be downstairs by the bar at 8pm. We had just come back on the ferry from Inhaca so we got showered and watched some soccer before we headed down. We exit the elevator to find Roy in workout gear having just come back from a jog. He clearly was flustered that it was already 8 and had us sit at the bar while he ran to get a shower (funny point: He's in the room next to ours). He had Nelson, the bartender, make us a pina colada and a manhattan. We laughed having no clue what this evening was going to entail.

After drinks, we were ushered out to the pool where they had set up a table with candles. The candles were a nice touch but it was a particularly windy night so they didn't seem to want to stay lit. Roy presented Dan with a rolled up paper that had a nice note about how much they appreciate us as guests and whatnot and explained the evening's menu.

Now, let's backtrack a bit. Roy's previous engagements include the Hyatt in Miami and a Sandals resort in Jamaica, although his wife and kids are still in Portugal. Coming from those hotels, wining and dining patrons is somewhat easy and what he really enjoys doing. This makes his current hotel much more difficult since it is 99% business people and convention attendees. Almost no one is here on vacation with their spouse. So when he saw us (and kept seeing us) it was clear we were an anomaly. Hence why he practically begged to put something together for us. Anyway back to the food....

The first course was spicy shrimp with mango and a delicious sauce of some sort. Quite possibly the best plate we've had here. The main was a juicy, perfectly cooked chicken breast with a vegetable tart-like thing in puff pastry. (I just made a point of saying how well cooked a chicken breast was. I think that pretty well describes the barometer of food we've had for the last three months, although we have had some very nice meals.) Dessert was a custard in a cup that my best description is that it would be listed on a San Francisco dessert menu entitled something like "deconstructed custard tart". The custard was in the glass topped with some fruit and some graham cracker crumble thing. Everything was delicious. We had some wine and the chef, a very nice Swiss gentleman, came out and chatted with us.

 Shrimp Appetizer

Empty Dessert Glass

Did you notice there is no picture of the chicken? Yeah. About that.

All in all it was a lovely evening. Good food, good company, and it was free! All because we know a guy... Guess it really is true.

Less than one week left...

...of my 20's.

It's been a wild, unexpected, fulfilling, incredible decade. If you had told 20-year old Jen that she'd be spending her 30th birthday in Maputo, Mozambique as a resident of the Republic of Ghana, I am quite certain she would have laughed so hard that green beer came out her nose. I do love that my birthday is St. Patricks Day, though it is tough to live in an area of the world that has no idea what that is. That said, I've had my fair share of enjoyable green moments over the years starting from when my parents would take me to Bennigan's and tell me that everyone was celebrating my birthday. I later learned this was a hoax and just an easy way to keep me occupied with a claw machine and free XL tshirts while they enjoyed a cold beer or two. Kudos to them for a genius idea.

It's been an eventful decade. I graduated college debt-free, went on study abroad, met my future husband, bought a house, left said house to move to San Francisco, met more amazing people, reunited with old friends. Went to lots of college football games, NFL games, college basketball games, baseball games, hockey games. Went on numerous college football roadtrips with some of my best friends in the whole world. Slept outside countless nights through rain and hurricane force winds to sit front row, midcourt for four years of college basketball games. Witnessed 4 Florida Gator national championships, a Tampa Bay Lightning Stanley Cup, 2 (should have been 3) Pittsburgh Steelers Super Bowls and 3 San Francisco Giants World Series. Went to a MLB All Star Game and a Final Four. Traveled to about 20 countries around the world with school, family and/or my husband.

I started college as an incredibly picky eater. Now I'm willing to explore food options and developed a palate for red wine. I suppose much of this was kindled by the foodie population of San Francisco and its proximity to some of the best wine in the world. It also doesn't hurt that now I get menus written in Portuguese so sometimes "winging it" is the only option.

I met, was wooed by, moved across the US for, said yes to, and married my best friend. I celebrated with many of our friends as they did the same. I've laughed and cried and laughed til I cried and loved and lost and all the other feelings that go into 10 years of your life.

I have been beyond blessed with what I have accomplished, experienced, felt, tasted, photographed, etc in my 30 years of life. I certainly don't take it for granted. As weird as it is to be halfway around the world from my home country, it feels like it's exactly where I'm meant to be as I step into a new decade.

Here's to all the new adventures that my 30's bring and to Dan for being my partner in crime and the one who keeps me grounded as I continue to "type A" myself through life. Thanks for being by my side as my other, more relaxed half. Oh, and thanks for letting me beat you in fantasy football. That always helps too.

One more weekend til 30... Bring it on.

What's in a blog name?

Generating a name for this little blogging endeavor proved to be a difficult task. I like to think I'm a pretty creative person, but I was having a terrible time coming up with a winner. I needed something that was generic enough to encompass all the topics I'd like to post about but still somewhat specific to me and my personality.

A little back story on how we got here...

My husband and I have been married for just over one year but together for about six years. We met in June 2008 on a study abroad program through Manchester Business School in England. Five weeks later we had visited Prague, Barcelona, Toulouse, Paris, London, Dublin and back to Manchester. Afterwards, we returned to the States, Dan to complete his Master's degree at University of Illinois and me to attempt to put my University of Florida Master's degree to work back in St. Petersburg, Florida.

Fast forward a year and a half of emails, texts, phone calls and frequent flyer miles, I moved to San Francisco to be with Dan. He had started working there six months before and I knew that I would have to be the one to relocate if we wanted to be together long term. In July 2012, we went to Antigua to celebrate our "anniversary" and the first night of the trip, Dan proposed. Almost exactly one year later, we got married at Vintners Inn in Santa Rosa, CA.

Now we're getting to the name of this blog. We asked a good friend to be the officiant, which also allowed us the freedom to pretty much write our entire ceremony from scratch. We wanted the mood to be loose and carefree, so we started off with a light-hearted quote from Dr. Seuss: "We are all a little weird and life's a little weird, and when we find someone whose weirdness is compatible with ours we join up with them and fall in mutual weirdness and call it love." The goal for this blog is to document our adventures in life together, some on a day-to-day routine level like recipes, health, fitness, but also on a higher level as we travel and explore new things together. Essentially, I hope to use this as an outlet to record the "growth of our mutual weirdness" and hope you enjoy coming along for the ride.

So there you have it. That is how we came to be here today with this name and these goals. The first post for this blog is now complete. HIGH FIVE!